Meet Callista

Callista Gingrich gave a rare interview to the Christian Broadcasting Network for a segment on her husband’s presidential campaign, inching forward into the spotlight that other spouses in the 2012 race have long embraced.

As Maggie and Ben wrote in March, Callista has led an almost impressively bunkered political life: “In eleven years of marriage, Callista Gingrich has never been the subject of a profile. Gingrich’s aides declined to make her available to POLITICO for an interview, to talk about her or the marriage on the record or on background, or even to suggest friends who might offer a glimpse of the would-be First Lady.”

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But with her husband now within striking distance of the Republican presidential nomination – and primary voters still expressing reservations about the Gingriches’ marital history – the fortress of solitude is opening up a bit:

The Callista section starts at about the 13-minute, 50-second mark, with Newt Gingrich saying he feels defensive of his wife since “there have been lies told about her” during the campaign. He says he credits her for making his comeback possible.

“I don’t think I’d be here today without her,” Gingrich says. “The two worst months of a 53-year career were June and July this summer. And twice she just said, you know, get to the debates.”

The interview clips that actually feature Callista are totally newsless and if you’re looking for a tell-all interview about the Gingriches got together, this isn’t it. At best, it’s a first glimpse of an elusive spouse before the camera, where she’ll probably have to spend more time if her husband is going to be the Republican nominee for president.